Children of the Corn

     Stephen King was hot, hot, hot in the early 80's. After the enormous success of "Carrie", "Salem's Lot", and "The Shining", suddenly anything with King's name attached to it was in great demand.  "Cujo", "Christine", "Creepshow", and "The Dead Zone" followed.  Then, we were introduced to the "Children Of The Corn".  Based on Stephen King's excellent short story, "Children of the Corn" arrived in theaters in March of 1984.  This quickly became an HBO staple, and was pretty scary stuff back in the day.  It's got a lot of things going for it- tremendous atmosphere, some genuinely creepy moments, and a great and haunting score by Jonathan Elias.  Obviously it struck a nerve in pop culture- it's spawned 6 sequels and a television remake.  Don't bother, though.  If you're going to see what the fuss is all about, then go with the original.    

     Peter Weller and Linda Hamilton play an unsuspecting couple driving through miles and miles of eternal cornfields.  Nebraska, to be exact.  After a tragic accident, they stumble across the empty little town of Gatlin.  Seems the children of this town have found religion and killed everyone over the age of 18- all according to He Who Walks Behind The Rows, of course.  Some unsettling stuff, and King's short story that this is based on is utterly chilling. (I highly suggest reading it before you see the film.)

      "Children Of the Corn" does offer some genuine shocks throughout, and besides some just plain ole' average acting, it's really not that bad of a flick. It didn't quite translate as well to the big screen as it could have, but being a low-budget chiller, it's still pretty good regardless. There are some frustrating moments in the film that could have been done better, but oh well.  This one stood out to me.  Definitely worth watching if you haven't seen it.  Be warned though- only one official theatrical sequel (and a crappy one at that)- the rest are straight to video!  Oh and one more thing- that little Isaac kid is creepy as hell!